City within a city

The concept of a city within a city is not a privilege granted by designation, but rather an inherent need, a necessary legal tool for Ho Chi Minh City to unleash its productive capacity.

Ho Chi Minh City is focusing on drafting a Law on Special Urban Areas to submit to the National Assembly . (In the photo: a view of downtown Ho Chi Minh City - Photo: QUANG DINH)

Ho Chi Minh City is focusing on drafting a Law on Special Urban Areas to submit to the National Assembly. The Politburo recently met to review the three-year implementation of Resolution 31 of the Politburo on the direction and tasks for the development of Ho Chi Minh City until 2030, with a vision to 2045. This included emphasizing that Ho Chi Minh City should proactively research, advise, and propose to the Politburo the issuance of a new resolution on the construction and development of Ho Chi Minh City in the new era.

The reality is that a megacity with over 14 million inhabitants is reaching the limits of its old governance model, forcing it to seek a more suitable new institutional framework. It will be difficult to create breakthroughs for Ho Chi Minh City if this special urban area continues to wear the same uniform legal framework as other provinces.

When an administrative unit possesses an economic scale and population equivalent to a province, forcing it to operate under the administrative apparatus of a commune or ward inevitably leads to bottlenecks.

The model of urban governance for the new phase needs to change, with many breakthroughs. There have been proposals to establish a mechanism for a "special urban government" to replace some commune-level units, which is attracting significant public attention, including the application of a city-within-a-city model.

Looking at the world, the city-within-a-city model or small-scale administrative zones were once key to paving the way for the breakthrough of megacities.

This is the case for Shanghai's Pudong district, Seoul's special districts, or some of Tokyo's "special wards," which have flexible governance mechanisms that allow them to leverage their unique advantages without being constrained by a uniform administrative structure.

Many communes and wards in Ho Chi Minh City have very large populations, large economic scales, and extensive geographical areas, yet their authority remains at the grassroots level. A city with hundreds of thousands of inhabitants still having to handle its affairs using the apparatus and authority of the commune level will inevitably lead to an overload.

Looking at the broader picture, the cities of Vung Tau and Thu Dau Mot also need a "makeover." Ho Chi Minh City needs to take a step ahead, transforming its key communes and wards into "satellite cities" to connect directly to the entire regional supply chain.

There are three reasons to support Ho Chi Minh City's city-within-a-city model. First is the pressure of governance scale.

Secondly, Ho Chi Minh City is eager to create new "growth poles" to generate breakthrough momentum, with a high degree of autonomy to flexibly attract large capital flows, and activate the digital economy and high technology.

Thirdly, the city-within-a-city model still ensures adherence to the current two-tiered government model, while clear decentralization and delegation of power, along with a suitable and legitimate model, are the foundation for operating a smart, streamlined, and efficient urban government.

Ho Chi Minh City is facing the challenge of finding new drivers of growth in the context of shrinking traditional development opportunities.

What Ho Chi Minh City needs is not just more urban area, but more institutional competitiveness. The city-within-a-city model could become an institutional laboratory for the digital economy, high technology, international logistics, green finance, or coastal urban development.

To implement this new model, site selection needs to be based on strategic and inter-regional planning thinking.

First and foremost, we need to frankly reassess the model of Thu Duc City, avoiding a situation where it bears the title of a city but still has to "seek opinions" from various departments and agencies for everything.

Can Gio is emerging with new development opportunities, requiring rapid growth, posing a significant challenge if it remains "remaining at the commune level".

With the planned international transshipment port and its orientation towards a coastal urban area, Can Gio needs to be organized according to the model of an ecological and economic maritime city to proactively engage in dialogue and attract global shipping corporations.

This new mechanism can only be successfully implemented if there is a clear division of responsibilities from both sides. The central government should strongly delegate the authority to pilot mechanisms and policies to Ho Chi Minh City.

Ho Chi Minh City must proactively demonstrate its self-governance capacity through a transparent implementation plan, prepared with high-quality human resources, and a ready digital technology infrastructure.

A megacity that wants to thrive needs a sufficiently broad institutional framework for the future.

The concept of a city within a city is not a privilege bestowed by designation, but rather an inherent need, a necessary legal tool for Ho Chi Minh City to unleash its productive capacity and continue to maintain its role as the economic locomotive of the entire country.

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TRAN HUU HIEP

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/thanh-pho-trong-thanh-pho-20260519084449017.htm